


Explainable

by SquateX



Series: Like Family (SVTFOE) [2]
Category: Star vs. The Forces Of Evil
Genre: ABSOLUTELY PLATONIC, Eclipsa totally runs a cat cafe, Father Time being a goof, Fluff, Loopholes, Star missing her mentor, Star's thinking about impossible stuff, but also really smart for once, crazy physics crap, platonic, the destruction of magic changed a lot of things
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-23
Updated: 2019-05-31
Packaged: 2020-03-13 07:59:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,653
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18936736
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SquateX/pseuds/SquateX
Summary: Star misses her mentor, no doubt, when she tries to rebuild her life from scratch. No magic, no nothing.Until she realizes he might still be alive.Sequel to Unexplainable, part 2 of Like Family (SVTFOE) series.





	1. Serious Mysterious

**Author's Note:**

> Hi y'all, I really enjoyed writing from Glossaryck's point of view, but then I realized there were some loopholes in SVTFOE that weren't really addressed. So I thought I would take it somewhere.

She drew him, sometimes.

Not that Star was stellar at drawing. But it was something she enjoyed doing; it set her mind at ease.

When things settled down and rules for the new world were re-established, she went back to high school with Marco and Janna. Tom came this time, too. The high school was bustling with people from all walks of life and to be honest, Star couldn’t be happier. _This_ felt like home, an amalgamation of both worlds and _more_. It felt like it was supposed to be this way. This was how everything would have been, if magic had not separated the realms in the first place.

And she was sure that this content feeling was universal. Before the Cleave, everyone didn’t know what they were missing or if there was an empty feeling there, in their minds or hearts. A vague... emptiness. And they only realized it had been there when, after the Cleave, everyone in the universe realized they felt... _home_. Fulfilled. Safe, warm, happy, complete, the list goes on.

Magic really _did_ do more harm from good, if it kept the universe shattered and feeling incomplete.

Art class was one of her favorite classes now. It didn’t used to be, but the new expressions from habitants from different dimensions were reflected into their art. To her, it was amazing to see their experiences expressed in each piece, including her own. So on Friday, when their take-home assignment was a free-style one page drawing of whatever inspired them, Star found herself sitting among the crumbled ruins of the magic sanctuary.

And then she drew him.

It was gross and wet here, her back pressed against uncomfortable damp bricks of stone, but for some reason it was just so... comfortable. Star couldn’t quite explain it. It was a place where she had always felt safe. She felt drawn here, and spent most of her time here for the past few months after the Cleave. It was where she spent most of her time drawing him.

Funky little blue man. He was a weird person, but she’d always been weird so they’d been weird in solidarity. Secretly, she was convinced that he was where she had gotten most of her weirdness, but she couldn’t really remember spending time around him at all before she had the wand, so Star wasn’t really sure that it was possible.

She missed him, though.

As impossible as it was, he had always felt so much more like family than he acted. Maybe she was just used to him just hovering... _around_. And now that he wasn’t, things were silent.

Empty.

She tried to draw him with a sarcastic smile, because that was the usual look he sported. It didn’t seem real, though. Well, obviously it wasn’t real. It was a drawing. But... it didn’t even seem like the real _him_. Granted, he was full of dad jokes and enjoyed confusing everyone around him, but to be needlessly sarcastic didn’t seem his style anymore.

She chuckled to herself, running her palms on the moist, earthy floor. _Anymore_. She talked like he was still –

Star swallowed the lump in her throat, looking down at the page. It wasn’t a very _good_ drawing, but seemed to capture more of his usual features. She was drawn to the tears that soaked into the paper, creating small crevices in the sketchbook as it dried.

Glossaryck, and the Magical High Commission. He and Heckapoo didn’t seem to mind the thought of death, and briefly she wondered if that was just a trait of someone imbued with raw magic, but mostly Star thought about the rest of the high commission. How would they have felt knowing they were minutes from death?

A thought really struck her, this time.

Did she _kill_ them?

Of course they were dead but – was _she_ a murderer? The thought sent shivers down her spine, and briefly Star thought of a time when she truly thought Glossaryck was dead by Toffee –

Oh, so that’s why she kept coming back to this place.

It wasn’t just a place of solace. It was the place she had said goodbye the first time, and the place where he had been revived. There still wasn’t much of anything really cleared up by that. How did it even happen? How was it even possible?

She grinned a little, a silly small grin, thinking about how he literally made her feed him pudding and ran around shrieking Globgor’s name just to be an arse. She was irritated at first, but he was a weirdo created by the universe, or the universe created by him; something told her it was really both.

He’d told her once about a temporal causality loop, but only since she’d asked. It was something briefly covered in physics class since it was too complicated to be tested by high schoolers. Basically, she remembered: Thing A created by Thing B, to create Thing B, to create Thing A – he was never very good at explaining things, but if she put it into words: Glossaryck created the universe so that the universe could create him.

So maybe that was what happened then? When he’d been revived by the magic sanctuary? But wait, that didn’t make much sense. Because as long as magic existed, he never seemed to truly die, just... regained another form by magic. And since magic has existed as long as the universe has – well, he just made himself another form, with her help.

Star wracked her head, trying to understand what the temporal causality loop _meant_ , to Glossaryck. Because as far as she could tell, he just created the universe, and that was that.

... Unless it hadn’t created him yet.

Star sat up, her sketchbook falling to the side. Magic no longer existed, so then – if he was created _now_ – he’d _genuinely_ be created _by_ the universe.

And time hadn’t frozen. Time hadn’t frozen, which meant that _one_ member of the magic-imbued people made by Glossaryck was _still alive._

Father Time – which could mean-

Was it a possibility? At all? Was she just getting her hopes up?

Her hands were clammy, and Star all but abandoned her sketchbook on the watery floors and climbed the broken steps to the top of the well. It was empty now, of course, but she wondered. Would it lead anywhere? Anywhere at all? It wasn’t a portal anymore, but – maybe it still _lead_ somewhere, like how the taco shop was on top of an underground mural of Glossarick.

But it was a long way down...

“Yeah, not a great idea, I don’t think.”

The voice came behind her and concluded her thoughts. Jumping in her skin, Star stumbled backwards, and large blue arms steadied her. “ _Falling_ down the stairs isn’t a good idea either. Trust me, I’ve tried it.”

She looked up at Father Time, who’s grinning at his own joke like it’s the best in the world. She couldn’t help but smile. “I was _just_ thinking about you, actually.” Star laughed, sitting on the edge of the well. He raised an eyebrow, but sat on the stairs.

Star looked at the time wheel, which is being spun by a hamster which was clearly enjoying itself. “I don’t mean to sound, uh, mean, but – how are you still alive? How is anything from the plains of time still alive?” She knew he was still growing, mentally, and hoped it wouldn’t come off rude.

It didn’t. But apparently he’s also been doing more growing than she thought. He glanced between Star and the Wheel of Progress (probably making sure the hamster didn’t stop). “You know,” he began thoughtfully, “I have no idea. I come here now and then, since the Cleave pretty much smooshed everything together. Doesn’t really give you an answer by wondering.”

He handed her a slightly soaked sketchbook, brushing it off with a hand. Star took it with an inward sigh. “My sketchbook...” She’d left it on the ground.

“It’ll be fine.” He assured her, waving it off, then winked. “Give it a little time.” He fiddled with his robe. “You were drawing the Big Guy, huh?”

Star nodded, looking down absently.

“You... miss him?”

Quieter, she said, “All the time.”

Father Time pulled on his beard absent-mindedly. “I don’t think that’s a popular opinion.” He chuckled a little. “Not even my siblings liked him.”

“The Magical High Commission were jerks.” Star muttered.

“Maybe,” he nodded, eyes looking distant, “but uh, they were also pretty... rejected.”

Star’s brows furrowed, a look of confusion washing over her face. “What do you mean?” He shrugged, smiling.

“You’re lucky, you’ve got people who adore you. They make sure you know that, huh? The people who made you, I mean. But Glossaryck – not so much.” Father Time rambled. Star thought about that. Glossaryck _had_ been emotionally distant from pretty much everyone, but she imagined that was his job. Maybe he was worried that if he cared enough, he would change the outcome – maybe that was a bad thing.

But maybe, since he already knew what was going to happen... maybe he thought there was no point in getting attached.

That would be... sad. Star liked to think of Glossaryck as... not as depressed as that. But she couldn’t shake the feeling.

“Father Time,” Star said hesitantly, eyes squinting as she thought about how to phrase this crazy thought, “I, uh, had this thought before you showed up.”

He gives her a surprisingly stern look, for someone a bit... slow. Maybe the lack of magic had something to do with this – magic had made her and her mother pretty dumb and childlike in the magic realm, after all. “If it’s the reason why you were looking like you were about to throw yourself down a well, then by all means, explain.”

She cocked an eyebrow. “I thought you could see into the future...”

“Magic... affected the Time Plains to some degree. I can see things from the past and present, but the future is off-limits now.” He shook his head, combing his beard with his fingers. “Continue?” He offered her a more relaxed, silly smile.

Slowly, Star slid off the well walls and took a seat beside him, wringing the hem of her pastel green dress in her hands. “I was thinking that he might be still... I mean, he could come back, couldn’t he? You’re still here, so maybe –”

His eyes blinked, reflecting sympathy. “Star...”

She panicked. She knew that tone. The tone of someone who didn’t want to crush her hopes, but... “No, hear me out! Look, he created the universe, right? So what if the universe could create him right back? He’s come back before, but –”

Father Time’s eyes widened slowly. “Like a temporal causality paradox...?” He looked away quickly, mulling something over in his head. “He was always fond of that paradox... he’s even _used_ it when playing with time...”

Star’s heart was put on pause. “What?” she breathed, a hand coming up to cover her mouth.

Slowly, the tension in his shoulders melted away, and he shook his head. “If your guess is more than wishful thinking, then we still can’t do anything.”

“Why?” She whispered, her heart slowly beating once more. They couldn’t help things along? Or even try to _find_ him if he was already out there, somewhere?

Father Time’s smile was a bit strained this time. “The _universe_ is the one making him. And it takes its own time. Whether we wanna or not, we can’t really make it go faster. If it hasn’t already been done, I mean.” He brightened, leaning back and gently patting her back. “But hey, if it helps, I’m sure he’ll make his way back after, if he wants.”

She hoped he would, frankly. She’d give him all the pudding in the world if he’d just visit. She’d call him uncle, probably, if he’d let her. They could watch stupid romance comedies he always likes and watch instant-karma videos. She’d take him to visit Meteora and Eclipsa.

Moreover, she just wished and hoped that she was _right_ about the paradox thing.

Star waved Father Time off once he started to notice the hamsters getting bored, and he took off to explore the new world once more. Star lingered on the stairs, looking at her drawings. Glossaryck probably wouldn’t look like this anymore, if he was recreated. Or maybe he would. She hoped she’d be able to recognize him no matter the form.

Closing her sketchbook, Star sighed and stood up, leaving the ruins of the magic sanctuary. The blue skies greeted her and the wind tossed her hair; she decided, whatever happened: today was going to be a good day.

Off she went.


	2. The Caterpillar

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Star realizes that she's got a new history teacher. And he's a familiar pain in the arse.

Star’d seemed pretty off lately. It’d be pretty weird of her friends to have _not_ noticed.

She visited with Marco all weekend and they had babysat both Mariposa and Meteora, talked with Eclipsa and Globgor, who had recently moved from vegetarianism to selective omnivore since it was causing him ill health. Star ran errands for her mother; dropped off letters, served as a spokesperson on behalf of mewmans, all the boring adult stuff.

So, nothing new there. What _was_ new that Janna noticed immediately was that Star delayed in laughing at her stupid jokes. There was a certain nullness in her eyes. It bothered her. So after class, Janna narrowed in on her target.

Janna slammed Star’s locker closed, leaning up against the wall. “Okay. Start talking, Butterfly.”

Star’s first and foremost reflex was to deny anything being wrong. “Whaaaaaaat?” She laughed nervously. “Whatcha talking about, you crazy Janna, you?”

Janna’s amber eyes focused on Star’s fidgeting body language; her hands kept busy by wringing the hem of her dress, the forced, wide grin on her face, and the tiny beads of sweat budding on her forehead. Janna snuffed. “I’m smelling major BS vibes.”

Star grinned. “You can’t smell a vibe...”

Janna crossed her arms. “I do what I want.”

“Ooookay...” Star reopened her locker. Janna slammed it shut again, narrowly missing Star’s fingers. The blond whirled on her. “Janna! I have to grab my history stuff!”

Janna shook her head. “Not until you tell me what’s been bothering you. Marco won’t ask, because he respects your boundaries too much. ‘ _She’ll tell me in her own time!_ ’ Pff! Lucky for _you_ , ol’ Janna doesn’t know personal space.” She seemed proud of that fact. Star still couldn’t figure out how that was ‘lucky for her’, but let out a sigh.

“Would you believe me if I told you I didn’t know?” Star asked weakly.

Janna narrowed her eyes. “Okay, now I _know_ that’s BS. You’ve had that weird look on your face since you got back from the weekend. Marco told me he noticed it on Saturday. And we all saw you during school Friday, so something must have happened after school.”

Star’s entire frame faltered and crumbled. Her eggshell blue eyes were cast downward and she heaved a sigh, slowly reopening her locker. Janna didn’t stop her this time. “I just... It’s hard. That’s all. Can we talk about this another time? We’re gonna miss class.” Reluctantly, Janna pushed away from the wall, and nodded, looking away.

As they walked down the hall, a steady silence grew between them, but it was an accepted one. Star didn’t have the energy to talk today and Janna, for once, was going to stop pressing her on the matter for the time being.

The classroom seemed to have a different vibe when they entered. Something seemed... off.

“Hey Star! Janna!” Tom greeted them eagerly, having saved the seats beside him for them. The three of them shared a class while poor Marco was off suffering in boring English. Well, not that history was any better.

But it seemed it was about to get a lot better, anyway. As they took their seats, Tom grinned ear to ear. “We’ve got a new teacher since Mr. Karmen went on paternity leave.”

New teachers were always a fun experiment. Students would always test the waters to see how much they could get away with before the teacher drew the line. Star didn’t imagine this going any differently. “I got to meet him earlier,” Tom chuckled. “The guy’s nuts, in a Janna kind of way.”

Janna grinned. “Ooh. I like him already! This should be interesting.”

Star groaned. “I can handle _one_ , but _two_ Jannas? The universe must be against me.” Her head slammed against the desk surface in exasperation.

“ _Two_ points to Mewmanity for the display of enthusiasm.” A new voice, bored and wise, struck something within Star. Heart pounding, she shot up straight, only for her eyes to find someone she’d never met before. She couldn’t help the wave of disappointment from crashing over her.

The history ‘substitute’ was middle aged, as she’d figured from the voice. Yet some features seemed familiar to her. She couldn’t quite place it; he looked scraggly, for starters, unkempt ashen brown hair and a six o’clock shadow. He looked like he hadn’t seen a night’s worth of sleep since the day he was born. The one thing that struck her was the goatee.

Most of everyone on her dad’s side of the family was pretty scraggly, so she figured that was why he seemed familiar. He even had the ‘dad’ body to boot, what with the gut he had.

Janna was giddy. “Dude, this guy looks like he could care less if the world ended.”

The teacher raised an eyebrow at Star, who was still staring uncannily. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost. Should I redact those points?”

The comment rubbed Star the wrong way. She frowned, glaring at the desk. “Those points don’t even _do_ anything—”

“ _Five points from Mewmanity!_ ”

The class rippled with laughter, and Star turned a deep shade of red – from annoyance and embarrassment. Janna punched her shoulder. “Relax, Butterfly, he’s kidding!”

Their history teacher, as bored as ever though they’d seen him for only three minutes, scribbled a slightly intelligible name on the board. “Yes, my last name is Contentsun. If I hear anyone call me the Table of Contents, you’re getting extra homework. I’m looking at you, Janna.”

Janna snickered. “He’s the author of his own weirdness, too. I like this guy.”

Star frowned. “How did he even know your name?”

“Rude. Talking in the middle of the teacher speaking is rude. Ten points from Mewmanity.” The history teacher cut in.

Star threw her hands up in exasperation. “ _You don’t even know if I’m mewman_ —”

“Ehhh, fifteen is sounding better.”

“Oh my G– _really_??” Star pinched the bridge of her nose, internally sighing. “Fine. Fine. _Twenty_ points from Mewmanity. Go for it.”

His expression remained unchanged; focused. It felt familiar. “Like a caterpillar. Wriggly, blind, slow.” 

A rush of blood fueled to her head. What was his deal? “What?” She growled. He waves her off.

“Anyway. So, history. Fun. Sort of – only if you’ve lived through it. Then you’re just nostalgic.” He addressed the class. “Hey, here’s an idea. A vote. All in favour of not doing anything today and watching a chick flick?” A wave of hands rose from the rows of desks. He nodded approvingly. “Right. You guys have your priorities in check.”

There was nothing really irritating about what he’d said, but Star found herself fuming the more he spoke. Janna nudged her with her elbow. “Relax, kid.” She murmured, an uncharacteristic softness in her voice. She knew Star had been on edge; the teacher couldn’t have known that though. “Give him a break.”

“I can’t handle two Jannas,” Star whispered tiredly.

Janna couldn’t help but smile mischievously. “There’s only one of me. And only one of him. And he’s putting on a _movie_ , and I’m pretty sure he’s in his pajama pants, now that I think about it.” Star looked back; the teacher had his legs propped up on the desk while the projector played some chick flick on the wall. She didn’t even notice the lights being out.

“Whatcha guys talking about?” Tom peered over at Star, his voice low.

Janna shrugged. “Star’s a little moody today.”

Tom nodded thoughtfully. “Well, that was obvious. I mean, are you talking about the substitute?”

“Yeah,” Star sighed, gloomy. “He annoys me, and I haven’t even known him for a day.”

Tom’s eyes were mischievous. “Remind you of anyone?”

“My dad’s entire side of the family,” Star groaned. Tom frowned.

“Really? I didn’t get that vibe.” The demon boy rubbed his chin. “But now that I think about it, he is pretty messy.” He seemed to freeze on the spot when he finished that sentence. Janna and Star exchange a glance, but before they can say anything, Star glimpses their teacher giving them a pointed, knowing look, but saying nothing.

Speaking with only the look on his face. That was also pretty familiar. Something her mother does – Star wondered where her mother learned to do that briefly. She shook her head, and pulled her sketchbook from her bag. She wasn’t a huge fan of chick flicks, but passing the time finishing her doodle of Glossaryck would do her good for her grade in art.

Time passed, and she tried to think of a good, mural-like background design she could incorporate in her drawing. The theme was what inspired her – Glossaryck did. He’d pushed her to teach _herself_ to do things. He’d encouraged independence. He – wow.

He was the first adult in her life to actually _believe_ in her.

Throat tight, Star quickly scrubbed the tears threatening to spill down her face with the back of her wrist, and smiled. Glossaryck might have prided himself on having a neutral status, but she knew better.

The background mural, she decided, would have his favorite people: Eclipsa, and Meteora. Probably in their Mewman forms. She didn’t really remember their forms that well, but she guessed she’d take “artistic liberty” with it.

“Hm.”

The sound came from behind her. Star jumped out of her seat, shocked out of her trance. Contentsun took this opportunity to lift her sketchbook off the desk with one hand, examining it with his other hand scratching his chin. “Interesting. Maybe not _quite_ like a caterpillar, then.”

“Give it back!” Her voice raised, Star yanked it clean out of his hands in a flurry of embarrassment and panic. There was a look on his face, not quite the same bored expression. She didn’t have a lot of time to actually look.

 In a panic, Star grabbed her bag and quickly walked out of the room, face burning up.


	3. The Butterfly

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Star escapes to Eclipsa's little café and comes to a terrifying discovery. But also maybe a comforting one.

“And then I left, like a wuss...”

Eclipsa blinked, drying her bowl with the stained kitchen towel. She’d not expected Star to show up to her small cat café at the exact time school had supposedly ended, but then, she’d always been a rebel. She could empathize with this.

“Sounds like he was trying to get under your skin.” Eclipsa chuckles, pausing, “in a good way.”

Star gave her a look. Eclipsa knew this look well; she’d been on the other end of it. “Literally only _me_. And he grabbed my sketchbook! Who does that? Ugh!” Star throws her hands up in the air. “And I’m stuck with him for the rest of the year!”

Eclipsa leaned on the counter beside the cash register, propping herself up on her elbows. “Well, you certainly have an exciting year ahead of you.” She remarked. “But you’re always welcome to draw at the teahouse, you know. It’s pretty slow on workdays, except suppertime.”

Eclipsa examined the watch on her wrist; a very aristocratic item. “Globgor should be back with Meteora in a few minutes. I’m sure Meteora would love to play with you, you know. She hasn’t seen you since you went back to school.”

Star brightened, grinning ear to ear. “Oh wow! Almost a year old now, huh? How’s she been? Enjoying playing with the rescue cats?”

Eclipsa winced. “She gets a little over excited, I would say. We’ve been trying to teach her to pet gently, but you know babies. Very eager, don’t know their own strength. Luckily, the kitties help teach her boundaries too, with all their hissing.” She chuckled, lifting a small white cat with a black fleck under its eye. She rubbed noses with it as it purred affectionately. “This is our newest rescue. Cute, isn’t he?”

Star felt a small smile tug at her lips. “He is... How does Globgor like the cats?”

Eclipsa giggled. “He loves them. He lets them pile on top of him when he’s home. I can hardly find him under all that cat!”

They share a chuckle, and Star grinned widely at the image of a big dude underneath piles of purrs and furs. She slid out her sketchbook and began doodling, never minding the patrons chatting with each other and playing with the rescues. It became background noise, a comfortable chorus of voices and sounds. She tried to draw the mental image of Globgor cuddling with hundreds of cats.

The door jingled, letting Eclipsa know that another patron entered. Before addressing them, she held Star’s drawing arm. “Do you want me to get you a bubble tea? Chocolate?” She asked cheerfully. Star nodded eagerly, suddenly giddy at the idea of a bubbly chocolate drink.

“Thanks Auntie,” Star called as Eclipsa left the counter to greet the patron. The eerily familiar voice chatting with Eclipsa sent ice blood through her veins.

“No.” Star muttered, sinking into her seat. “ _No_.”

“Oh, yes.” Her history teacher mused. The seat beside her at the counter is suddenly heavy as he takes a seat. “How did you _know_ this was my favorite place?” The question was more of a tease, a light comment to ease Star out of her moodiness. There was no caution to it, he just _didn’t care._

Star gritted her teeth. “Why are you _here_?”

Mock surprise. “Don’t you know? They have the _best_ desserts here.” He grinned widely, like the chesire cat. Looking quite pleased with himself, he lifted a little cat who had been wandering on the counter and plopped it into his lap, scratching its chin. He earned a little purr of approval.

Star avoided looking at him, head resting on her arm as she turned the sketchbook away from him and kept drawing Globgor.

“Globgor!”

The way he said that – Star’s heart was stuck in her throat. But she wanted to stay mad. But she couldn’t. Ugh. Star looked in Contentsun’s direction, and realized, face flushing with embarrassment, that he’d never actually stopped looking at what she was drawing. His enthusiasm for seeing – and recognizing – Globgor was what bugged her the most. How did he just _know_ everyone in her life?

“So, when did you take up drawing? Seems like a very caterpillar thing to do.” Her teacher said nonchalantly, his cheek resting on his fist.

Star gritted her teeth again. _Again with the caterpillar thing_. But if he was going to act like nothing was wrong, then two could play at that game. She stuck out her chin and forced a deep breath. “FYI, it’s only for _art class_.”

“Oh yes, that’s definitely why you’re drawing _outside_ of school on a Monday.” Came his immediate reply, voice full of gentle amusement. “It’s nice to see you committed to something.”

“You think I’m not usually committed?” Star growled. She’d saved an entire kingdom, thank you very much.

He grinned. “Towards school or learning? Not in the least.”

He had a point there.

She hated that.

Star shoved her drawing away. “I’m not in the mood anymore...” she mumbled, just as Eclipsa reentered the room from the kitchen, carrying her chocolate bubble tea in one hand and some kind of chocolate mousse (?) in the other.

“Here you are,” Eclipsa smiled from ear to ear. She set the bubble tea and mousse down in front of Star and her nuisance, respectively, examining Star’s rendition of Globgor smothered by cats. “Oh, that’s just too sweet. Star, can I take this page and show it to him? He _just_ came in through the back.” Seeing the giddy look on Eclipsa’s face, Star nodded, offering a tired smile.

Contentsun wasted no time digging into his mousse while Eclipsa ran back into the kitchen with Star’s page of Globgor. His eyes kept trailing back to the sketchbook. “... Sorry, about... the sketchbook.” The sentence was awkward, like he wasn’t used to genuinely apologizing. Star looked up from the counter out of the corner of her eye, eyes half closed.

“... whatever.” She sighed, staring holes into her drink but not daring touch it.

Star reached for her book, flipping the page back to Glossaryck. Her throat strained, she buried her face in her arms. Looking at that was a mistake, a reminder of what wasn’t _around_ anymore. Some days it was fine, looking at it and drawing it, but sometimes... just sometimes, it wasn’t easy. In a sense, she figured her dislike of the drawing was obvious to Contentsun.

Her teacher doesn’t seem to take his eyes off the drawing. He shoves another spoonful of chocolate mousse into his mouth. “You know, your drawing? It’s missing something.” He dips a finger into the mousse, and dabbed it _right_ onto Star’s Glossaryck’s mouth. She shot up, appalled. Contentsun looked pleased with himself. “There we go. Perfect.”

“You – you stained my drawing! Right in the middle!” Star gawked, feeling her eyes moisten. She slammed her palms onto the counter. “I worked all weekend on that! Why did you do that?! It’s – it’s the rest of what I have of –”

She noticed the heat on her face, but it wasn’t until she noticed the look of worry on her history teacher’s face that the heat came from tears. She choked up from both embarrassment and anxiety. “I – I don’t want to _forget_ what he looked like. And now there’s a huge smudge—”

“Well,” Contentsun offered a cheery smile. “If you’re going to _draw_ me, you might as well include a pudding stain, kid.”

Star stiffened, mind pulling a blank. _No. No way._

She looked at Contensun, then at his mousse, then back at him, then back at his mousse –which she realized was pudding. _Pudding_. She began to shake her head rigorously. “No. No, no, no.” She grabbed her head, fighting the tears building up in her eyes. “ _No_. This isn’t funny! This isn’t – he’s _dead_ , I _killed_ him—”

She broke.

Her arms trembled, and she buried her head under them on the counter, unable to move from her spot. This wasn’t possible – this wasn’t funny – why did he hate her so much –

“You are _not_ responsible for that.” He said, softly but firmly. “You _know_ that.”

“How do _you_ know?!” She spat back. “If this is some stupid joke then knock it off!”

“I told you I was _proud_ _of you_ , and you still get the impression that you _killed_ me?” Glossaryck murmured out of wonder, tilting his head at Star. He sighed as the cat in his lap left, and shovelled more pudding into his mouth.

Star didn’t look up, but her stomach churned.

“Caterpillar.” He chided softly.

She glared at the counter in front of her, refusing to look. “... Why do you keep calling me that.”

He takes a breath. “Because you’re wriggly, blind, and a bit slow. But that’s okay. Caterpillars turn into butterflies.” He smiles, pleased with his analogy. “Star, I kinda expected you to recognize me. When you didn’t, I gave you clues. Come on: Glossaryck? Glossary? Contentsun? Table of Contents?” He grinned. “But it _was_ fun to see your face.”

She didn’t look up. He hesitantly rested a hand on her head. “Let’s just forget about this whole thing, okay? Just enjoy your drink?”

That was his tactic. He just didn’t address things. At least he wasn’t running around screaming Globgor.

But she couldn’t forget.

Star turned her head away, but allowed for his hand to stay on her head. It was warm, and comforting, and frankly she didn’t feel like rejecting the one person she’d been clinging to for a while. So on her head Glossaryck’s hand stayed.

“When,” she croaked, her throat hoarse.

“When what?” He said casually, scraping the sides of the pudding bowl intently. His hand gently smoothed down a few frizzy strands of blond hair.

“When did you _know_ you were alive? _When_ were you done being _made_?” She growled.

Glossaryck tsked at her. “Ah, ah, ah. Cosmic secrets are _classified_.”

She hated how much she missed her mentor’s subtle way of pushing her buttons. Star could feel irritation bubbling up inside of her, but amidst it all, she felt a bitter smile grace her lips. “Are you – are you gonna stay?” She whispered. _Please stay._

Glossaryck made a show of looking around, eyebrows raised. “Tempting, but no.”

Star’s heart leapt into her throat, but then he continued, ever so annoyingly. “I’m _mortal_ now, and if I stayed at the café, you can be sure that Eclipsa would spoil me with pudding. Wouldn’t do any good for my waistline.” Glossaryck examined his belly, which, admittedly, was not _thin_ , but comfortingly _dad-ish_.

Star groaned. “ _Stop_ giving me a heart attack and just tell me a real answer for once!”

Glossaryck’s eyes softened, and he gives a small, toothy smile, clearly touched. “Oh, so my absence gives you a heart attack? How sentimental. But fine, away with the games, of course I’m sticking around. You don’t think I’d go through all that effort of undoing my immortality to leave you feeling like you lost something, do you?”

His hand, which she’d admittedly forgotten was still on her head, ruffled her hair and removed itself. Something within her felt a whole lot better. Star allowed herself to smile for real this time.

Glossaryck saw, and returning it, he purred, “There’s the butterfly.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! Hope you enjoyed this chapter, please leave a comment (they make me smile).
> 
> Not sure how many chapters there will be, but there shouldn't be too many.


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